Sweet Embrace of Morpheus
by EmpatheticIgnorance
Summary: "Pain. That was his first thought that enshrouded his consciousness as his awareness returned. The intense beating ache of the rhythm of a drum sounded throughout his aching skull as his eyes squinted pathetically at the harsh, unforgiving light."
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Pain. That was his first thought that enshrouded his consciousness as his awareness returned. The intense beating ache of the rhythm of a drum sounded throughout his aching skull as his eyes squinted pathetically at the harsh, unforgiving light. Coughing from the dust that had affixed itself to the inside of his ruined mask, the sluggish trail of blood continued to drip unceremoniously onto the rubble beneath him; red rivulets running down his broken body in a steady rhythm to an unknown melody, the drops coalescing to form a weeping puddle of tragedy.

For what seemed like an age, the steady rhythm of a continuous flow was the only noise to accompany the sinister silence that had succeeded the devastation. The gentle pitter-patter of the drops deafening in the amplification the silence brought; like death's messenger the eerie stillness foreshadowing death and destruction.

The gentle pattering of his precious life-force lulling him to, what would be, a premature, eternal sleep, he blinked slowly, regaining his wits. Aware of his precarious situation and his weakening grasp of consciousness, he painfully shifted within his tomb, that of which the falling debris had encased him in. Harsh gasps and pain filled grunts filled the air as the lithe, battered figure tried to pull himself from his would-be grave. Struggling under the immense weight of the broken rocks and destroyed building, he finally managed to uncover his upper torso to accompany his already half uncovered face.

Exhausted, he lay back and basked in his momentary success. The throbbing of his skull resonating through his body right up to the tip of his toes in an ever increasing, unforgiving dance. The insistent thumping accompanied by the steady rhythm of his life dripping away lulling him into a false sense of reality only sleep may bring.

 _Blink. Blink._

Noises. Voices, he recalls. Calling. Calling him. Calling him? What. What?

 _Blink. Blink._

They shout for him. He thinks. He doesn't know. He can't seem to think. He's too tired, eyes too heavy to maintain the burden of wakefulness. Sleep. Sleeping is good, especially when he's tired, right?

 _Blink. Blink. Blink._

Closing his already drooping his eyes, he gives into the sweet embrace of Morpheus.


	2. Chapter 1 - From the beginning

**Authors note:**

 **Before I start this story properly, I'd like to clarify a few things. This story will be based off of events from a mixture of different movies of spiderman but mainly, in particular, the events of Amazing Spiderman and it's sequel. This is due to the fact that I will be using the tragedies of these two movies to manipulate events of the prologue of which I wrote on a whim. However, I have tampered with the events and their timelines in order to better fit** **the** **destination** **I have in mind. Sorry if this puts anyone off!**

 **Timeline:**

 **August 10th 2000 - Peter Parker is born.**

 **November 23rd 2004 - Mary and Richard Parker leave Peter with his Aunt and Uncle.**

 **November 23rd 2004 - Mary and Richard Parker are killed in a plane crash.**

 **September 16th 2015 - Peter is bitten by Oscorp spider.**

 **September 20th 2015 - Uncle Ben dies.**

 **December 3rd 2015 - Officer George Stacy is killed by Doctor Connors as the Lizard.**

 **November 8th 2016 - Gwen Stacy is killed after confrontation with Harry Osborn as the Green Goblin.**

 **November 8th 2016 -Spiderman disappears.**

 **January 2017 - Events of The Avengers. Peter's Aunt May and Peter are away out of state when New York is destroyed.**

 **April 29th 2017 - Spiderman returns and defeats Rhino.**

 **August 20th 2017 - Chapter 1.**

 **April 2018 - Prologue.**

* * *

 **Chapter 1**

 _~ 8 months earlier ~_

 _Beep. Beep. Beep. Bee_ -

The high-pitched screeches were abruptly silenced when the precise, quick movement of a well-practised hand flew through the air. The limb, belonging to a drowsy lump on the bed, retreated back into its safe haven beneath the heavy layer of blanket that enshrouded it once victory had been achieved. With a sigh of content the lump settled back in and soon soft snores filled the now peaceful room.

"-er. Peter!" Startled the lump's eyes flew open as, with a sharp bang, a beautiful middle aged woman burst through the bedroom door. The lump, now identified as Peter, yawned widely and blinked up at the woman, making no move to get up, as she stood above him with fists on her hips berating the drowsy teenager. "Get up! You're going to be late!" And with barely a chance to protest the woman ripped off the blankets and opened the curtains allowing light to flood in.

"A'ight, 'm up, 'm up." He groaned pathetically, covering his eyes which had almost been blinded by the intensity of the sun peeking through his window. Yawning, he sat up and stretched his arms above his head, effectively cracking his back and waking the teen up marginally. Somewhat functioning and a lot more aware, Peter swung his legs around and settled his bare feet on the carpeted floor. Stifling yet another yawn in the fist of his hand he blearily shook his head and looked up at the beautiful woman grinning down at the teen.

"Well good morning to you too, sleepyhead." The figure chirped happily with a Cheshire grin successful at getting the teen out of bed.

"Hm, morning, Aunt May." Peter mumbled drowsily in return. The figure – now identified as May – stifled the urge to laugh at the bedhead her beloved nephew wore.

"C'mon sleepy, get moving. Can't have you being late for school." She trilled. "It's only the first day back and, yet, already, I have to drag your lazy behind out of bed." Chiding her nephew, she mock glared at him, the twitching of her lips and the twinkle in her eye belying her amusement of the situation. "Move it Mister!" With these parting words and a quick twist on her heel she sauntered out of the room shutting the door behind her.

Groaning, Peter flumped backwards on his bed. Looking at his bedside alarm clock that sat innocently on his nightstand, he sullenly glared at the blaring red digits displayed on the screen. _6.58am_. Sighing, Peter couldn't help but sulkily stare at the roof. It felt like only seconds ago he had lay his head down only to be awoken quite abruptly by the intimidating aura that was his Aunt. Stifling, yet another, yawn, he let himself be lost in thoughts.

Being a teenager was hard what with having to balance school, his social life and homework but being a teenage vigilante was even more so. In a city that never seems to respect the concept of sleep, it was becoming quite common for Peter to miss out on his rest. With his sleep schedule a wreck, he would often be caught catching up on his sleep napping in classes at school or by having a quick shut-eye whilst the crime rate was low throughout the day on a nearby rooftop. Recently though, it seemed as if the whole city had gone mad with the sudden spike in crimes and violence. Just last night Spiderman had singlehandedly prevented 3 robberies, 2 knife incidents, an influx of gang related crimes and rescued 14 from a fire that had set an apartment block building up in flames. And that was just a warm-up. Sometimes he wished he could take a break but memories of Gwen, in particular her gruesome death, would send a pickaxe straight to his heart and flood his veins with ice reminding him not to be so selfish. The people needed him and he would not disappoint them like he did her.

Shaking his head, Peter was brought of his reverie. Dragging himself up to his feet, he let himself get lost in the motions of getting ready for the day ahead.

* * *

With a whoop of exhilaration and a _thwip_ of a web, the costume-clad vigilante swung through the air. Flying through the sky in an unheard melody that only he could hear, the enrapturing sight of pure joy in its most truest form catching the breath of any observers. The wind seemingly embracing the teen in a joyful semblance of a hug playfully throwing and catching him as he swung through the air, Spiderman couldn't be more at ease. It was times like these that he truly felt free; like a bird trapped within its cage he could not find peace unless he was in the air flying, or well in his case flinging himself from building to building only to be caught by the wind as she lovingly caressed and embraced her playful companion like a lover would do.

A sharp, trilling scream of pure, unadulterated fear rang through the air interrupting the call of the wind. Halting for but a brief moment, Spiderman threw himself towards the sound. Arriving on the scene to discover a young woman in her late 20s being harassed by a group of thugs surrounding her, he called out to them. "Hey, why dontcha' pick on someone your own size!" Startled, the thugs flew around waving knives towards the voice. Successful at diverting their attention away from their would-be victim, Spiderman grinned. "4 against 1? That isn't very fair."

"I-I-It's Spiderman!" Stuttered one of the thugs. _Thug 1,_ he dubbed.

"Who cares? I'll squash that bug if he dares to mess with us!" _Thug 2_ snarled. Lunging forward, he stabbed the knife towards the voice only to hit nothing.

"Missed me!" Whirling around _Thug 2_ slashed at Spiderman only to have his hand webbed to the wall behind him, the knife clattering to the floor. He struggled in vain as he was webbed fully to the bricks of the alley wall, all the while cursing at Spiderman. "Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" The vigilante quipped as he webbed the man's mouth shut, silencing the stream of profanity. Turning back around, Spiderman flexed his muscles as he walked towards the remaining three. Seeing their so-called leader down and out of commission by Spiderman seemed to unfreeze _Thug 3_ and _4_ out of their momentary state of paralysis. Yelling, the two charged at Spiderman.

Cracking his neck and stretching his back Spiderman leaped. With a duck and a sweep of a long lithe leg, _Thug 3's_ legs were swiped out from beneath him, hitting the floor, only to land in a sprawled heap on his back, a pain-filled grunt escaping between chapped lips. Dodging the sharp point of the steel knife, Spiderman pivoted on his right foot and spun up behind _Thug 4._ With a sharp chop to the back of the neck, the thug dropped to the floor heavily like a sack of potatoes.

The sharp tingling in his head bringing his attention back to the last of the four thugs - the one who had identified him - he was met with a swinging fist. Leaning backwards, he flipped backwards onto his hands lifting his feet up to connect with the other man's chin. Dazed, the thug stumbled forward as he shakily tried to stay standing. Giving the man no time to recover, the masked vigilante tripped him. Landing beside the groaning heap of his fellow thugs, the man was quickly webbed to the floor of the alley. Quickly apprehending them and making sure they were securely caught by his web, Spiderman turned back to the petrified woman.

"Are you alright Miss?"

"T-t-thank y-you!" Bursting into hysterics the young woman sobbed with relief. "For s-saving me-e f-from them!"

"It was no problem, I'm glad you're save. You'd better get out of here and phone the police. Have 'em round up 'em." Pointing his finger to the downed thugs the woman quickly scuttled away. Shaking his head, Spiderman cast a web at a nearby lamp post and launched himself back into the air unaware of the flashing red light that suddenly went out in the corner of the alley after his departure.

* * *

 _Unknown Location_

"Impressive, truly impressive. Let us see how he manages against a bigger foe." And with these words cackles pierced through the air. Surrounded by computer monitors and wires the hunched figure gleefully schemed.


	3. Chapter 2 - It'll be okay

**Chapter 2**

Great, heaving breaths permeated the silence. Wincing, the figure stretched their arms above their head and sighed when the sound of joints cracking and relaxing followed the action. Sighing, Spiderman touched his hand to his tender ribs, gained from overzealous bank robbers with metal pipes and guns. One of the men had managed to get a lucky shot on him with the metal weapon when a stray bullet had been shot towards a civilian. Flinging himself at the elderly woman he had managed to push her out of the way, however, the bullet had scraped a painful line across his thigh for his efforts. Distracted by the unexpected bout of pain he had been unprepared for the swing of the pipe at his exposed midriff. His quick reflexes, the only reason his ribs were not broken but bruised, had him jumping back avoiding most of the damage. This didn't mean it didn't hurt though; each breath sent a hot lance of pain shooting through his body. His body would need to heal before he could use his webs again, it was not a good idea to lift his arms with the sharp pain stealing his breath with only the slightest of movement. He should probably call it a night, it was pretty late afte-

His musing was cut short as the sound of sirens and the sight of blue flashed past his alley, deafening in its approach. Lifting his head, he shot a web up to the rooftop beside him. Landing, with a wince, at the top of the building, he viewed the police and their destination and groaned. Rampaging through Manhattan, the lizard was on a warpath. Flinging cars flying, bystanders ran, screaming, in an attempt to scuttle away from the enraged reptile.

Leaping, Spiderman sailed through the air. Shooting a web at the apartment complex before him, with a snag on the line, he threw himself up high. Repeating the motions, the webhead sailed through the night sky. Breathing in the air, he pushed the pain of bruised ribs creaking in protest at the abuse of dangling by his arms to the back of his mind. _No pain, no gain._

The piercing scream of a distressed child called Spiderman over like a moth to a flame. Landing in a crouch, toes planted firmly and balls of his feet hovering off of the ground, the young hero shot his webbing at the hulking monster before him. Blinding the Lizard momentarily with his web, Spiderman propelled himself up by another web and delivered a sharp, swift kick to the jaw of the toothy sneer. Grunting, the beast was sent flying, scraping across the tarmac ground and hitting the side of an abandoned car. Turning around, the spider swept the child up into his arms. The young child, for she could be no older than 6, sobbed into his shoulder as he shot a web forward to the top bars of the bridge.

"Shh, shh, shh. I got ya'. It's okay, everything's okay." Clutching the child like a lifeline, Spiderman sailed through the air. The reverberating roar and the subsequent screaming of the young life within his arms, had the webslinger hastening his pace. "It's okay, don't look. Darling, don't look. Close your eyes and it'll all be okay. I promise. Okay? I promise."

Dodging the incoming metal pipe, launched at him by the Lizard, he curled around his precious cargo and shielded her from the raining shrapnel. Sharp pieces of metal pierced his suit as the Lizard wrought destruction behind his fleeing form. Wincing at the abuse and the pain of previous injuries, Spiderman couldn't help but let out a sharp grunt, muffled by his mask. The sobbing of the young child only heightening his plight, the teenager thrust himself towards safety at a faster pace. The crackling rip of his web and the subsequent free-falling had his heart dropping in fear. Flipping himself over in the air, the loud crack and burning rush up his back accompanied him as he hit the tarmac several feet below the two individuals. Muffling his shout of pain, Spiderman looked down at his passenger. The damage the fall would've brought, having been absorbed by the vigilante, was prevented from harming the little girl. A tear-streaked gaze met his masked eyes. Raising a shaking hand, he stroked the blonde curled head before him.

"I-It's okay. Did it scare you? I'm sorry, little one. You're not hurt, are you? I'mma get us outta here, okay? Just hang on to me, alright?" Trembling hands gripped his neck in a delicate hug as he lifted them to their feet. Wincing at the pain and the dizziness, he tripped forward a few steps before righting himself. Knowing he could not fight back until he got this little girl to safety he, yet again, slung a web into the air. Hearing the thundering steps of the Lizard behind him and the deep, gasping inhale of the child he gripped her closer. Trying to distract her from her fear he soothed her. "What's your name?"

"B-beth."

"Alright Beth, I'm Spiderman. How old are you?"

"5."

"Wow, 5 already? So big!" He gasped. A hesitant, quivering smile rewarded the teen for his attempt. The trembles seemed to lessen as the young hero distracted Beth with his theatrics. Panting from the effort of fleeing while dodging incoming projectiles, Spiderman couldn't other help but feel relief as the sight of the end of the bridge, full of police cars, that were lined up providing a barrier between the civilians and the rampaging Lizard. Slowing down, he let his feet hit the floor, coming to a rest before the heavily armed police officers.

"It's okay, Beth. You're safe, you're safe." Soothing the child, he moved her into the arms of a kind-faced female officer. "You need to get her out of here. I'll handle this now. But please get her back to her parents. She needs them."

"We will Spiderman but you can't think you can handle him all on your own-."

"It'll be okay." Interrupting the officer's concerned reply, Spiderman shot a web and pulled himself away from the barrier towards the Lizard. _I have to handle him, no matter the cost,_ he vowed. Sailing over the top of the growling monster, he shot a web at his claw raised hand.

"Hey Doc Connors! Over here, you overgrown frog!" Roaring, the Lizard ripped the webbing in half, freeing his hand. Turning and chasing the taunting arachnid the beast's anger burst free at the sight of his enemy. Ripping at cars and ground alike, he launched whatever he could at the webslingling vigilante. "Missed me, stupid!"

Deeming them a fair enough distance away from any civilians, having mostly been evacuated to safety before the hero's arrival by the police and the rest having escaped from harm during Spiderman's rescue of the young girl, he landed on the bridge and turned to meet the incoming irate Lizard. Crouching, he prepared himself.

Swiping a claw at the vigilante only to miss by a well-timed twist, he growled in frustration. Kicking out at the Lizard, the teen sent the mutant tumbling back a few steps. Raising a sharp, toothy snarling mouth, he hissed at the other only to grin maliciously as he caught sight of a tanker truck. Lifting the fuel-filled vehicle, he threw it at Spiderman. Diving out of the way, Peter barely dodged with his battered body. Shooting a web at the Lizard, he curled into a ball and threw himself feet first at the other. Only to get one of his legs caught by a strong claw. The sharp talons digging into skin, drawing blood, he pulled at his leg desperately trying to get the claw to let go. Grip tightening until his ankle creaked ominously, he cried out. Throwing a desperate punch at the Lizard's face only to get his left hand caught, Spiderman panicked. Harsh squeezing of his wrist had, with a sharp crack, his webshooter splintering into scraps. Red rivulets of blood ran down his now damaged limb; digging into his flesh the shrapnel bringing excruciating pain, Spiderman couldn't help but grunt in pain. Catching the other by surprise, the vigilante used his other webshooter to blind the other with a burst of white webfluid at the eyes. Momentarily stunned, letting go of the hero to rub frantically at his eyes, the Lizard roared. Aiming a kick at the scaled head, knocking the reptile to his knees, he webbed the Lizard's arms to his sides and his kneeling legs to the floor. Huffing in pain and exertion, he was startled when instead of anger the other's eyes flashed with glee. With but a single tingle of his spidersense, he had turned on his heel only to see the tanker truck explode sending him unwillingly sailing through the air. Hitting the floor, he blacked out.

* * *

His ears were ringing. His head was pounding. Groaning, he coughed up some blood that ended up staining the front of his mask. Opening heaving eyelids, his vision blurred. _How long have I been out? Minutes? Hours?_ Wincing, he tried sitting up. _Nope, bad idea, bad idea._ Flopping lifelessly back to the ground, he cried out. Scrunching his eyes in pain, he nearly blacked put again. Breathing through the pain, he was jolted back into awareness with the screaming of his spidersense. Opening his eyes, he was met with the sight of the Lizard breaking free of his web restraints. Cursing, Spiderman tried to will his battered body into cooperating. Alas, it was all for nought, he was too damaged to move.

Thundering footsteps, slow but steady, vibrated through his pounding head, rattling his skull and reverberating like a beating drum signalling his demise. Clenching his teeth, his eyes blurred with tears of pain behind his mask as he, yet again, tried to rise. Flipping his body over, he managed to crawl a few steps before the shadow of the Lizard loomed before him.

"Poor Peter Parker." The Lizard spat out. "Always alone. Always will be. Your existence bringing nothing but death to those around you." Snarling at the vigilante, he reached the other. With a clawed hand he picked up the broken body of his young enemy. Leaning in, he squeezed at the fragile neck beneath his hand. "Such a selfish _boy._ Even in death, you hurt them." Growling laughter mocked the teen as he struggled in vain to escape the clutches of his demented enemy.

"Get away from him!" The frightened shout and the bang of a gun startled the pair. The dart flew and hit the Lizard in the bicep. Roaring in pain he dropped the spider. _Seems they learned from last time that bullets have no effect,_ he snarled. _However,_ **he** _gave me more strength. More power._ Snarling, he yanked the dart out of his arm and crushed it. With a roar, he charged at the veteran police officer.

 **...**

Dropping to his hands and knees, Spiderman pulled his mask up to his nose to get more air. Coughing, he groaned as his headache seemed to increase ten-fold. His suffering, however, was put on hold when the Lizard roared, charging at the frightened officer. Dropping his gun in fright, the man was defenseless against such warped anger. Pulling himself up, he shot a web out of his only working webshooter and yanked the Lizard back. Pulling with all of his superstrength he spun around and threw the other into a nearby bus. Jumping after the flying ball of reptile, he launched a barrage of punches at the scaled flesh. Grimacing in pain, he was too slow to avoid the sweep of a tail that knocked him off of his feet and into the side of a car. Pulling himself up he dodged the stamp of an angry foot and flipped over the head of the reptile. Dragging his arm across the Lizard's throat he pulled the mutant into a chokehold. Straining to keep the other subdued, it soon became a battle of wills and strength. Dodging yet another sweep of the reptile's tail, he tightened his grip choking the doctor in an attempt to restrain the volatile man. Tightening his hold on the reptile, he continued to choke the doctor until his struggles grew weak. Only when he was sure that the other was subdued did he let the Lizard fall to the floor. Limping over to the police officer's tranquiliser he picked the gun up. Pointing it at the reptile he fired a series of three tranquilisers, each with a dose of an antidote and heavy sedative, into the Lizard, watching as with the third hit the body before him started to peel and flake until it reverted into the familiar figure of Doctor Connors.

Slumping in relief, the hero fell onto his knees in pain, coughing up blood on the way down. Desperately clinging into the last shreds of consciousness, he flinched violently when a hand softly clasped his trembling shoulder. Straining heavy eyes up at the old officer he saved, he blinked blurry eyes.

"-erman. -iderman. Spiderman! Are you okay, son?" Concerned grey eyes met his masked gaze. Surprised at the genuine feeling within the other's eyes, Spiderman swallowed thickly. Pushing himself up, with the aid of the other man, he stood on shaky legs.

"I-I'm fin-." Hunching over, he coughed up blood into his hand. With his mask up over his nose, leaving his mouth uncovered, the other man clearly spotted the blood. Alarmed the man grasped the hero's shoulder and kept him from falling back down.

"You need medical attention." The police officer called into his radio. "Spiderman is hurt. Requesting medical assistance immediat-."

"No!" Gasping, he doubled over in pain as his shouting seemed to reignite the fire of his wounds. "No, can't." He pleaded softly. "I'll be okay. It'll be okay."

"But-."

"I can't." The grief-filled words stopped the man from arguing. Stunned from the multitude of emotions in the vigilante's voice he could not help but watch as Spiderman righted himself and shot off on a web after limping a few steps away.

* * *

" _Breaking news. This just in. At 10.24 pm Spiderman was sighted battling the Lizard in Manhattan after his escape from the supposedly secure Ravencroft detention facility for highly dangerous and manipulative criminals. If you didn't know, the masked hero is responsible for the imprisonment of the Lizard when he first tried to terrorise the city almost 3 years ago where, unfortunately, Officer George Stacy, former Captain of the NYPD until his death, lost his life..."_

"Tony! You better get in here, that bug boy that you're obsessed with is on the news!"

"I'm not obsessed with him, Barton!" Tony shouted as he came waltzing into the room. "JARVIS, volume up."

 _"... disappeared for five months after his defeat of both Electro and Green Goblin and the death of Captain Stacy's daughter Gwen Stacy. His return to society was welcomed with open arms after his timely defeat of the Rhino. Since then he has been busier than ever, tackling more and more crime making our streets a safer place..."_

"Kid's got quite a track record." Clint whistled.

 _"... witnesses describe Spiderman fleeing from the Lizard as a young girl is seen clinging to his front. Seemingly protecting her from harm, this footage caught on the phone of a bystander records the hero as he seems to be injured and shaky from the constart barrage of abuse by the Lizard..."_

"Pretty impressive too."

 _"... eyewitness accounts describe Spiderman as being heavily injured after his defeat of the Lizard. Some go as far as to claim they saw the hero cough up blood as he limped away. However, what we do know is that this city can sleep in peace tonight knowing that Spiderman is out there. Moving on..."_

"Damn it, JARVIS bring up all sightings of Spiderman in the past hour."

"Sir, Spiderman was last seen heading West, further into the city."

"JARVIS, I want a perimeter of all possible locations to work with, taking into account his speed, strength and injuries."

"Sir."

* * *

His feet hitting the solid floor of the apartment block roof that he had stood upon before his fight, seemed to wake Spiderman slightly from his daze. Collapsing onto his back he let himself relax on the rooftop. Lifting a gloved-hand towards the moon, he grasped his only working hand into a fist. Pain wracked his body as he trembled in pain. Groaning, his head felt like it would explode. _Probably a concussion,_ he moaned. Letting his hand fall to his side, he breathed deeply. The movement jostling his ribs, he cried out, nearly passing out in pain. Black tendrils seemed to want to encroach on his vision, despite his desperate efforts of staying awake. Trembling, he closed his eyes and slowly breathed through the pain, one breath at a time.

* * *

 **For the sake of this story, I'm going to have it that the events of The Avengers took place on January 2017, two months after Spiderman disappears and three months before he reappears. I've made it so that he was away with his Aunt May when the Avengers events happen. I'll explain it later on in the story but it just wasn't fitting with his character and my story with him not protecting the citizens of New York.**


	4. Chapter 3 - Close Encounters

**Chapter 3**

Pain. Regret. Misery.

The swirling despair, this whirlpool of explosive emotions, a constant visitor to burden his heart like a plague. Dark, festering thoughts dragging him down, blackening his soul and fracturing his heart. Lost to grief, lost to love. His sin? Loving _her._ Killing _her..._

Blue-eyes gazing at him, with love and trust. _Peter,_ she says. _My love, my heart._ Grinning dimples, cheeky twinkles. Sun-kissed skin, fluorescent blonde hair trailing her as she turns. _Come._

Her dulcet tones melting him like butter, a soothing balm to his tortured soul. Stumbling after her retreating form, her sweet, sweet giggles flowing through the air like a long-lost melody of his heart, enthralling him. Shocking him.

"I-Is it really you?" Choking past a sob, he reaches for her. _Come, Peter. Come!_ Excited twinkling sapphire orbs hold him captive, blinding him. Swirling around, the beautiful blonde dances away from him. Away from him _again._ "W-wait!"

Desperate, he reaches out for her. Fingertips touch. Hands graze. Hearts connect. "It's all my fault. I promised him yet I failed. I failed you. I-I... I'm so sorry. So so sorry. 'S'all my fault. All my fau-."

 _Shh, my love. Come. Come!_ A slim, warm dainty finger presses against his rambling lips silencing him. Momentarily disappearing only to reappear further ahead of him. Out of reach, yet in his sight. Hesitantly following her, his relatively slow pace increasing with each passing second. The gap only widening, pushing him farther from her. _Come on, slow poke!_

 _"_ Don't go. No... No. Please, no!" Tears streaming down his face, heart breaking, he runs after her. The dark chasm creating an abyss of longing. Losing sight of her, his silent weeping no longer silent, he crumbles to the floor, broken.

 _Peeeter! Peeter! Where are you?_

Sniffling, his whimpers die down. "Mom?" Trembling limbs unfasten themselves from the sobbing ball of pain. "Mom!" The click-clacking of heels reverberating through his skull. Coming to a stop in front of him, face blurry and downturned, she doesn't reply. Small, child-sized hands stretch out in front of him, reaching out for his mother. Backing away from her sons grip, the woman let's her heels overhang the edge of the light. "Mom? W-what are you doing?"

 _I **t** 'S **a** L **l** Y **o** UR **f** A **u** L **t.**_ Voices overlapping, they condemn him. "P-please, I didn't mean it." Tilting her face up to face him, her features change. _My love, my heart. Come..._ Closing her eyes, she falls over the edge.

"NO! Gwen!"

* * *

"NO! Gwen!"

Gasping, previously drowsy eyes snapped open. Wide, dilated pupils glazed over with unshed tears, terrified and pained, darted to and fro. Heart pounding, knocking against his ribcage like a pounding drum, and his pulse racing; his fright was obvious. _Just a dream, it was just a dream._ Clutching at his mask, he peeled the sweaty cocoon from where it lay bunched up by his nose off of his face, letting the cool night air hit his exposed skin. Sighing in relief, he attempted to push himself up into an upright position only to gasp in pain when waves of black entered his vision and white-hot piercing pain stabbed at his battered body. Choking back a sob, he let his body flop back onto the floor, groaning when his vertigo reached new heights. His heartbeat thundering in his ears, the beckoning of unconsciousness almost welcoming. Slowly and shallowly exhaling, he breathed through the pain. The soft pitter-patter of the rain drops soon accompanying his quiet breaths.

"Damn it." Spiderman softly uttered. "This sucks. Aunt May is gonna kill me." Groaning in despair, he closed his eyes, trying to think of an excuse that would be convincing enough to let him off the hook. How he was going to get out of this was a mystery; when simply even breathing hurt, how could his aunt May fall for such pathetic excuses and lies, meaningless reassurances that fell flat from beneath grimacing lips when even he himself didn't believe them. _After all, the bullying excuse can only go so far before it loses it's credibility,_ he mused. And with that thought, he deflated.

His aches that had been, until then, a steady throbbing increased in their intensity with the sudden depletion of adrenaline. Crying out, Spiderman clutched his ribs with his undamaged right hand when a deeper breath, than what his complaining ribs could handle, jolted them sending sharp lances of pain through his body. Vision blurring with the reminder of, what he presumed was, a nasty concussion courtesy of an angry lizard, his eyelids slammed shut. Disorientated, he lay gasping and spluttering as he fought against the increasing intensity of pain his body was responding to, that the panic of his nightmare had distracted him from. A small, low whine escaped bloody lips. Coughing on the blood that had filled his mouth, his prone body choked on the sudden intrusion in his throat and mouth. Rolling over and pushing himself up onto unsteady hands and knees, with a muffled scream, he choked out a weak cry; blood and saliva intertwined, dripping down his porcelain, blood loss stained chin and leaving a trail as it dripped onto the unforgiving, cold rooftop below. _I_ _t hurts, oh boy does it hurt._

Shallow, rasping breaths escaped between clenched teeth. Trembling, the vigilante pushed himself weakly back onto his haunches, alleviating the blinding pain on his crushed left wrist slightly. Shakily exhaling, his head tilted upwards until it lay facing the night sky, droplets of water soaking his fevered forehead and wiping away his blood from his battered body. Sweat, blood and tears running in rivulets down his battered body. _It's going to be okay, it's g-going to be okay,_ choked whispers escaped between trembling lips. Almost lost in a trance, he continued to mutter broken promises and empty reassurances to himself.

The soft, almost indistinguishable whirring of - _a j_ _et? -_ soon jarred the delirious superhero from his disjointed rambling. The subtle, slight humming of his spider sense, warning him, not from a direct threat to his safety but warning him all the same. _M_ _y mask,_ he realised. Eyes widening, weak hands trembling, flustered he snatched his bloodstained mask from the floor and, fighting it over his windswept tangles and black and blue, bruise filled face, he stifled his body's screams of protest to his actions. Throwing himself up and away from the spot he had rested in, eyes scanned the rooftop for a less exposed space to hide. Flinging himself over and behind the billboard - _when did that get there?_ \- clinging on with his right hand as his crushed left lay useless, cushioning his protesting ribs. And just in time.

* * *

The fluorescent colouring of red and gold, eye-catching in its glory, was a stark contrast to the deep, darkness of the bitter miserable night. Silent, except for the slight whirring of repulsors and the rumbling of the storm, worried and frantic as he glided over the night sky scanning and seemingly patrolling the city, Iron Man was the perfect picture of an avenging angel. His pace steady, not quite fast but not quite slow, and his greater height allowed him a greater advantage over the rest of the avengers in sighting the city. Second only to Hawkeye with his exceptional sight through his silent vigilance and preference for heights, Iron Man was the best chance any of the avengers had at sighting Spiderman.

"Jarvis, any update of recent sightings of Spiderman?"

"Sir, no new recent sightings of Spiderman has occurred in the last approximate 2.31 minutes since the last search."

"Damn it, access the security cameras within a 10 kilometer radius of his last sighting and search for him. Keep me updated."

"Yes sir."

 _Damn it,_ Tony cursed, _where the hell is he?_ Eyes scanning the horizon, the inventor failed to catch any glimpse of the red and blue clad vigilante as the rain continued thundering down on his metal body, running down into rivulets to hit the floor below in a semblance of a tin melody. A mocking laughter, a hissing whisper; the rain only magnified his distress. _Come on Spidey, where are you?_ Panicked eyes flickered back and forth, roving between rooftop to alleyway.

 _"Tony, can you hear me?"_

Biting his lips, the inventor peered further into the night. "Tasha? Any luck?" Eyes swivelling, scanning the surroundings. "J, activate thermal imaging system."

 _"Nothing on our end yet. Even SHIELD has very little on Spiderman."_

"Nothing? - J, scan all heat signatures in a 20km radius. - How can SHIELD have nothing?"

 _"Just some speculations, any contact with Spiderman has always led to our agents losing his trail."_

"And SHIELD just backs away from one vigilante just like that?"

 _"Plans to intercept the vigilante were considered however were suspended temporarily."_

Huffing a sigh, Tony grimaced as blotches of colour blended together and faded as the rain intensified. Cursing, he sped up. As the rain continued to batter at his suit, hindering his sight, the superhero suppressed a groan. "J, scan again."

"Sir, the range of the thermal imaging system has been limited due to the scattering of light from the water droplets subsequently diminishing th..."

"Yeah, I know J. Just scan again." Grinding his teeth in an anxious frown, low mutterings escaped from grimacing lips. _Come on Spidey, where are you?_ Crackling over his headset and in his ear reminded him of his audience. Exhaling a shaky breath, the hero continued to peer into the darkness, flying through the night sky, as he listened to his team.

* * *

Sucking in a shallow breath, he gasped painfully as his injured ribs cried out in protest. His damaged left hand, clinging onto his torso weakly spasmed as it tightened in a subconscious effort to soothe his aches. His right hand and feet stuck to the billboard, Spiderman pulled his battered body further into a protective hunched version of his signature crouch. Groaning as a melody of pain pulsed through his head at the sudden movement, the edges of his already weakening vision blackened further. Blinking long, slow blinks, the vigilante suppressed another groan as the whirring of a familiar engine approached. _P_ _lease don't find me. Please don't find me. Pleasedon'tfindm-._

"-mit J, - e - ould he be -?" As the echo of metal feet meeting concrete rang out, his sensitive ears strained to hear the voice. Too intent in listening he hardly noticed his wet hand slipping, slowly losing it's precarious hold on the board, until it was too late. Jarring his ribs and scraping against the wound on his thigh, he unintentionally hissed in pain causing a red and gold head snapping sideways to face his position. Fighting back the pain-induced nausea he scuttled further back into the shadow of the billboard. Flattening his body against the billboard and closing his eyes, he mentally willed himself to become one with it. _Don't come over. Please, please._

"I think I heard something."

Thump. Thump. Thump. He wasn't sure if it was his rushing heartbeat or the loud, knocking footsteps of the ironclad hero that echoed achingly loudly through his pounding head. Shrinking his head into his shoulders Spiderman cringed as each sound struck his heart. Holding his breath as he heard Iron Man come to a stop on the other side of the billboard, he waited miserably for his discovery, the tense silence only heightening his anxiety.

The yowling of a cat screeched through the air as an accompanying hiss answered jarring the two heroes from the otherwise rumbling, dreary night. The rustling of fabric and the scratching of metal rent through the air as the two cats fought below. Spitting and screeching echoed through the night, slowly fading into the distance as the two stray cats chased each other away, leaving only the tapping sibilance of the rain thundering down overhead.

"Tch, just a cat."

Opening his eyes, the vigilante listened as Iron Man sighed. The crackling response, barely audible to his ears now that the distance had decreased between the two, was no longer drowned out by the hammering of the rain that was battering at his body. Straining his ears to hear the reply, he was instead met with the heavy thunking footsteps of the Avenger in front of him as they disappeared into the night. Soon the soft whirring of the suit permeated the air and, within moments, tapered off into the night. Tense, the teen held still for a few more minutes until, with a groan, he let his forehead fall gently onto the billboard.

"That was close."


	5. Chapter 4 - Journey Home

**Chapter 4**

 _Soon the soft whirring of the suit permeated the air and, within moments, tapered off into the night. Tense, the teen held still for a few more minutes until, with a groan, he let his forehead fall gently onto the billboard._

 _"That was close."_

* * *

After a lengthy silence full of tense anticipation and of wary alert, the vigilante allowed himself to relax. _It doesn't seem that he'll be back,_ he sighed in relief. Shakily stretching out his leg, the teen gingerly let his foot touch the rooftop below. Letting his body descend from the billboard to follow his foot, he winced when his abused ankle ached in protest to the added weight of his body. The shattered left wrist, a throbbing reminder of the painful demise of one of his trusty web shooters, was still loosely clasped around his aching ribs in a mock semblance of support. Red rivulets continued to flow down his broken body as the rain continued to batter down from above, washing away the precious life source that his body had bled out. Slowly, hesitatingly almost, he limped across the rooftop towards the edge and with a ragged gasp and a pained grunt he jumped. Landing hard on his injured ankle and jarring his ribs, the vigilante folded in on himself as his quivering knees buckled beneath the weight of the impact hitting the hard stone of the rooftop he had just jumped onto. His uninjured right hand, flying in front of him instinctively to catch himself, slammed unforgivingly against the solid brick with a stinging bite. Sitting back onto his haunches and coughing, the hero shakingly pushed his bloody mask up and over his nose with trembling fingers as a long trail of blood-stained saliva slipped from between chattering teeth and blue-tinged lips. His body rocking slightly to an unseen melody, the vigilante let his arms fall beside him as he tilted his head back and closed his eyes as the rain battered away at him.

The heavy pitter-patter of the rain, soothing in it's monotony, drowned out life; the repetitive tapping of the rain the only noise to accompany the lone figure in an otherwise silent, dreary night. Basking in the temporary peace, Peter's thoughts drifted to _her,_ like they always did nowadays, to a happier place filled with hope and a time when things were right in his world. Golden hair fluttered across the darkness behind his lids and blue eyes twinkled merrily. Laughter caressed his mind as her sweet, dulcet tones soothed his broken heart. _Peter, my love._ Whispered words and gentle touches lovingly exchanged. _I love you._ Promises and wishes. _Forever and always._ Kindhearted naivety of young true love, pure in element but fatal for tragedy. _Forgive me Gwen,_ his heart cried. She was his love. His life. His world. The world that had come crashing down around him because he was weak; it was him that destroyed their love, it was him who broke their promise of forever. _He_ had killed her. A broken sob edged out of despairing lips as the teen brought a shaking hand to his eyes. _Forgive me,_ he begged.

The bright flash of lightning as it ripped across the sky and the accompanying rumble of thunder jerked the superhero from his pained reverie. Whipping his head left to right, he frowned as he realised just how far he was from home. Aunt May would not be happy; she would be less than thrilled to see the broken body of her nephew, soaked to the bone, offering sheepish apologies and obvious lies. He still didn't know how he was going to pass this one off this time. Grimacing as his wounds jarred with his movement, Peter pushed himself up onto quivering legs again as he pulled his mask back down under his chin. Lifting his right arm and pointing it at the apartment complex across from him, he began his journey home with only one webshooter and a broken body, secretly thankful the Lizard never went on a rampage during daytime as he used the shade of darkness to hide his stumbling figure as he slung away.

* * *

An exhausted sigh escaped from behind tired lips. A hand running through disheveled hair dragged lazily down a disgruntled face. The other grasping tightly at a glass of scotch, gently swirled the alcohol as the man stared into it listening to the discussion around him.

"Tony. It'll be okay." A familiar delicate touch to his shoulder brought the man out of his regretful silence. "He'll be okay." Reaching up and squeezing, Tony let his eyes close as he clung onto the other hand, smiling gently when it squeezed back.

"I hope so Pepper. I really do." Letting himself soak in the comfort of his partner, he sighed as tense muscles relaxed and his guilt eased slightly. Clearing his mind from his self-imposed regret and despair, he lifted her hand and kissed the back of it before releasing her gently. Sraightening up and downing the rest of his drink, the billionaire pulled away from the other as he swaggered forward, away from the window, and towards the seated area where the rest of the Avengers had converged around.

"We have to help him-"

"-it's not like we can help him if we can't even find him-"

"Does he even want or need our help?"

"Clint!"

"Barton!" Echoes of chastisement sounded from Pepper and Steve. Frowning at the archer for his callous words, the two levelled disapproving stares at the man. Lifting his hands up in the air in a mock show of surrender, Clint backtracked.

"Wait, hear me out. I mean, would he appreciate us dragging him back and patching him up being with how vulnerable his wounds make him? The guy is a notorious loner, SHIELDs observations have made that clear. We may not know much about him but the bug seems to have a thing for secret identities. I'm sure he-."

"And what exactly _does_ SHIELD know about him bird brain?" Smirking at the archer, Tony continued on after his interruption. "SHIELD databases don't exactly seem to be full of details; Spidey's file contains only brief images and mere speculations, if memory serves right. Just face it, SHIELD is just as much in the dark about the guy as everyone else is in this room."

"Oh and you'd know all about the guy, wouldn't you Stark?" Clint snarked back, rolling his eyes at the other. Leaning back against the counter of the bar behind the sofas where he stood with his legs crossed at the ankles, the spy folded his arms and raised an eyebrow.

"I'm not the super secret spy agency now am I, Feathers? I never said I did." Tony cocked an eyebrow at the archer, challenging him to continue. Receiving no response other than a shake of the head in exasperation and a resigned sigh he grinned in triumph. Living together had taught Clint the futility in arguing back against this side of the inventor. Snarky and determined, Tony Stark could be a right stubborn mule when he wanted to be.

"SHIELD initially had plans to intercept Spiderman when he first appeared on their radar after the first appearance and subsequent defeat of the Lizard." Natasha, who had remained relatively silent ever since Tony had returned to the tower, finally spoke. Gazing flatly at the man, she continued. "It was decided that he was too much of an unknown. Surveillance of the vigilante was deemed necessary to determine the threat that he may pose."

"And?" Drawing out the word, Tony motioned for her to continue with his hand.

"As I said before, our agents would lose him. As soon as he was sighted by our agents, he'd be gone again. It was impossible to observe him in more detail and so his threat level was never determined."

"And so you just left it like that? Since when did SHIELD leave unknown targets to roam about unchecked? You guys were all too eager to come beating down my door and breathe down my neck. Has it changed or am I wrong?"

"Plans were being made to intercept the vigilante before his disappearance after the Goblin and Electro incident. However, his disappearance and Loki's attack made it impossible for us to track him down."

"That's just it? It took months for SHIELD to decide to bring him in, only to back away and just leave him be now that he has returned?"

"He is still considered very dangerous and since there is so much unknown about him we can't just leave him. However, it would go against everything that SHIELD values by eliminating a potential ally that has since, from the beginning of his heroics, protected instead of subjugated using his abilities."

"Uh-huh. And Fury is just gonna leave him just like that?" Eyebrows shooting up, incredulously, the genius clicked his fingers at the former assassin. "Excuse me if I find it hard to believe that the ol' one eye pirate is just going to back off there."

"His continued determination in protecting the public from street crimes and his deeds in both large-scale and small-scale vigilantism has, grudgingly, made SHIELD respect him. He is still being monitored, however, no longer do SHIELD plan to apprehend him until it is warranted."

"Well, this is all well and good but how is this gonna help us find him?"

"The point is that Clint is right. From what we have Spiderman is protective of his identity. Any attempts at this moment to approach could be met with hostility, especially seeing as he's not had any prior contact with any members of the Avengers. We can't risk it."

Feeling a headache coming on Tony rubbed at his forehead. _Is it too good for us for something to go easy?_ Closing his eyes and muttering under his breath, he cursed. Pacing back and forth like a caged lion, the billionaire sighed in exasperation. Throwing himself onto the sofa he covered his face with his hands. Leaning forward towards his knees, the inventor exhaled tiredly. "So we're just going to leave it at that? Leave Spidey as he bleeds out who knows where?"

The tired, broken words seemed to echo in the silence that followed. The Avengers had very rarely seen the genius so tired, so resigned, before. Seeing the exhausted man slumped in front of them they shifted uneasily as guilt crushed at them. Guilt for not noticing before how broken the ironclad hero before them actually was; guilt for never realising how much he could care for someone despite never meeting the vigilante. The quiet clearing of a throat, deafening in the uncomfortable silence, brought the attention away from Tony and towards the super soldier.

"I don't feel comfortable leaving Spiderman either. Not in that state. And not alone on the streets." Low murmers followed as echoing agreements were released by the rest of the room's inhabitants. Taking a deep breath and ploughing on, Steve continued. "We can't just watch him bring about his own destruction, protecting those that we don't unless a larger threat has us doing so. He needs support. Support of a team that we could bring him. He may not want us to help him but we can't just leave him."

"Oh and what do you propose we do? In case you forgot we don't know anything about him. No identity. No abilities. Nothing." Pushing off and away from the counter, in which he had been leaning against, Hawkeye walked towards the other. "We can't find someone who doesn't want to be found."

"Spiderman has al-"

Mumbling to himself Tony blocked out the rest of the conversation. Lifting his head up slightly and bringing a hand to his mouth he rubbed at his facial hair in contemplation. Eyes flickering around the room, as if looking for inspiration, the inventor continued to ponder. His silence, unnoticed by the rest, only broken when his eyes caught sight of the repeated news broadcast that was currently muted in the background. A slow smile, filled with wary hope, watched as the currently human and unconscious Lizard was apprehended and lifted into a back of the high security van.

"Hm, I wonder."

* * *

A red gloved hand shakily slid the window open. With a muffled squeak, it creaked open as the teenager winced. Sliding inside gingerly, careful not to jar his wounds nor make more noise, the vigilante shut the window behind him. Glancing at the red blaring letters of the alarm clock by his bed, he grimaced at the time. _1.07am._ Not his latest on a school night but certainly late especially with his injuries. He'd be lucky if his wounds had closed up and scabbed over by the time that he'd have to be up for school.

Shuffling into the bathroom he turned the light on and, peeling off his ripped suit, he stepped into the shower as he pulled the tap in the shower to the right, silently thankful that him and his aunt had separate bathrooms. Standing beneath the spray as it hit his head and washed the blood off from his body, he watched as the water soon turned pink and then clear. Gingerly washing his hair, he winced as a particular quick movement of his arm jostled his ribs and had him reeling in pain. Right hand flinging onto the shower wall in front of himself, he breathed through the pain and blinked the dark spots out of his vision. Closing his eyes and with a low whine, he pushed himself away from the wall. Turning off the shower he grabbed a towel from the railing and wrapped it around his aching body as he pulled himself out of the shower. Limping over to the the drawers by the door he reached in and pulled out his first aid kit from his bottom drawer, specially made for his escapades as Spiderman. Dropping his towel he pulled on a pair of boxer shorts from his top drawer. Opening the kit he pulled out the bandages, medical tape and scissors. Luckily his wounds, although serious altogether, were not too deep so stitches wouldn't be needed. Bandaging the bullet graze on his thigh and the claw indents on his ankle, he steeled himself as, with a harsh yank and a muffled scream, he had rebroken his broken left wrist from where it had started to heal wrong and cleaned out the cuts that the webshooter had made upon it being crushed with disinfectant. Wrapping his wrist up in in a secure dressing, making sure to tape it for support, he pulled a tubigrip bandage over the top of the bandages to keep the wrist in place for the night. Gingerly wrapping his chest and ribs in the bandages he pulled them tight and taped it for support, wincing when the tightness sent a lance of white hot pain shooting through him. Breathing shallowly, he limped over to the mirror to inspect his makeshift first aid.

A haunted gaze stared back at him from a gaunt, pale face. His face, so thin his eyes appeared almost comically large in comparison, battered and bruised. Dark, black bags sat beneath drooping eyes, a stark contrast to his porcelain coloured skin, emphasised the sickly appearance. Eyes scanning, he took in his obvious injuries. Injuries that he could not hide beneath his clothing. A split lip that had already closed up and a dark, angry bruise lined his temple. Despite this, his face was relatively untouched by his fight. Sighing in relief he continued to examine his body. A purple ring of bruises stood angrily out against the skin of his neck from when he had been choked. Small cuts and bruises littered his lithe frame. Knowing from experience, by morning the smaller and less tender bruises would be lighter, if not gone hopefully. The bruises on his ribs and neck would take a few more days to fade, with his ribs probably going to take the longest with the high probability of it taking a week, maybe longer.

Looking his body over he eyed his injuries with a critical eye. His broken wrist he could pass off as a skateboarding accident alongside the slight limp, bruised temple and split lip. It wouldn't be the first time he had injured himself skateboarding; his pre-Spiderman life, clumsy and uncoordinated, often had him getting into trouble. By morning he would, hopefully, have much more movement within it enough to pass it off as a sprain. His neck and ribs could be hidden within the confines of a hoodie and his bandaged leg with his usual jeans. Feeling a lot more relief and confidence with the situation, Peter turned off the bathroom light and trudged over to bed. Collapsing onto the mattress, he was out as soon as his head hit the pillow.

* * *

 _Unknown Location..._

"Hm? Interesting. Target, with a bit of difficulty, brought down the subject." A malicious grin spread across a twisted face. Laughing maniacally, the hunched figure snarled at the monitor that had recorded a limping figure disappearing into the night after the battle. "Just you wait Spiderman, soon you'll be begging for mercy at my feet."

* * *

 **Thank you so much for the interest in this story. Unfortunately, nothing exciting this chapter but I promise it will start to pick up next chapter. Anyway, thanks for reading, I hope you've enjoyed the story so far. Support and constructive criticism is always welcome**


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